Epistolary Novels – letter by letter
An Epistolary Story is one told through letters.
What is an epistolary novel? Simply put, it is a story told through letters. The most well-known (to me) is The Screwtape Letters, written by C.S. Lewis.
The Glinda Letters creates a bridge of history between The Hidden History of Oz stories (specifically The Witch Queens trilogy) and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, written by L. Frank Baum.
Dive into personal thoughts
Glinda writes to Oscar Diggs while he is in his self-imposed exile in Emerald City. She gives her deepest thoughts to her dear friend in messages that only they will see. There is an honesty conveyed in these letters that does not appear whens he is with other people. She conveys a sense of her own worldview that she simply cannot share with other people, due to her position as the Sorceress Queen of the South. She is responsible for protecting Oz, and that means duty comes first. There is no question that Glinda was fulfill her duty. The questions in her letters reveal a vulnerability that she cannot show to others.
See how they see themselves
The amazing thing about these letters is that Glinda sees the world in a very specific way. She believes in liberty and freedom, just like Oscar, but she does not believe that he can do it simply by being good. She has to gain power and protect him so that he can do what he believes in. Everything depends on her.
Glinda has a stilted view of the world that becomes apparent as you compare her words in private letters to her actions and words to others.
The Glinda Letters fills in the gaps between several stories in The Hidden History of Oz series. It is the backbone of history upon which to hang the sinews of story. It is one perspective drawn over a lifetime of experience waiting for love to open the door and step again into the light.
The Glinda Letters is available now on Amazon, or wherever ebooks are sold. Order your copy today and discover the Hidden History that sets the stage for Baum’s classic stories.
Writing The Glinda Letters
The Glinda Letters is published and available for purchase on Amazon, Smashwords, or wherever you purchase ebooks. If you are more of a traditionalist, and prefer hard copies, you can buy a paperback copy from Amazon.
Why are The Glinda Letters important to Oz? They span the time between The Witch Queens trilogy and L. Frank Baum’s original classic, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. I believe Glinda to be the most important character in modern Oz (more…)
The Glinda Letters – Cover Reveal
The Glinda Letters is nearing the moment of publication. I wanted all of you to be the first to see the new cover design.
The Glinda Letters is an epistolary novel composed of letters written by Glinda and sent to the Wizard, Oscar Diggs, while he is in a self-imposed exile in Emerald City.
Glinda writes a letter to the Wizard each year on her birthday, and also when events in Oz deem it necessary. Each letter details significant information that Glinda is learning and that she believes is important for the Wizard to know.
Through these letters, Glinda reveals her true soul to Oscar, bathed in tears, scorched in anger, and tempered with the fine fury of decades of wisdom. She grows from the angry child into the fearless sorceress sworn to protect Oz from all enemies.
All the while, Glinda urges Oscar to come into the light and leave the darkness behind. The throne of Emerald City is his for the taking. With political unrest growing, the urgency in Glinda’s letters grows. Then it subsides as time moves on and the Wonderful Wizard becomes a legend, and then a fairy tale. He has become a story. Then his throne is threatened by another. The Crown Princess is born, and then she disappears mysteriously. Then a powerful young sorceress named Dorothy lands in Oz. After the Wizard escapes his exile and returns to the land of his birth, Glinda waits for his return, so that she can finally have her happy ending.
This book bridges the gap between The Witch Queens trilogy and Baum’s original Oz books, ending shortly before the events of Baum’s fourth Oz novel, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (1908).
The Hidden History of Oz 